US military: We cannot bomb IS into obscurity

WASHINGTON (AFP) – The US military cannot bomb the Islamic State group into “obscurity”, it cautioned Tuesday, appealing for patience in its escalating attempts to defeat the radical militants in Syria and Iraq.

“No one said this would be easy or quick, and no one should be lulled into a false sense of security by accurate air strikes,” Pentagon spokesman Rear Admiral John Kirby told reporters.

“We will not, we cannot bomb them into obscurity.”

Kirby spoke a week after Washington launched air raids against the IS group in Syria, with dozens of bombing runs flown by American and Arab aircraft.

The raids have struck IS-controlled oil refineries, tanks, artillery, buildings and other targets, even as the militants continued to gain ground in some areas, including near a contested town near the Turkish border where Kurdish forces have been pushed back.